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The Toyota RAV4 keeps getting better

Toyota has improved the value of key RAV4 models by thousands of dollars with the expansion across the range of in-demand safety and convenience features.

A suite of safety technologies1 Toyota says can reduce rear-end accidents, previously fitted exclusively to the top-grade Cruiser, is now standard on the GX all-rounder and sporty GXL.

The RAV4 safety technologies1, which help prevent or mitigate a collision in different traffic situations, include a pre-collision system, autonomous emergency braking, lane-departure alert, active cruise control and automatic high beam.

All these features, including the advanced safety – previously available on automatic GX variants as an extra-cost option – are now standard on all GX (including manual) with revised pricing reflecting substantially enhanced value for buyers2.

The price of the petrol all-wheel-drive (AWD) GX rises just $840 – representing a saving of $2,960 compared with the previous option price of $3,800. The improved value is $2,900 on petrol two-wheel-drive (2WD) GX and $1,450 on diesel AWD GX.

Similar value gains of between $925 and $2,460 apply for the revised GXL with the safety features now standard. Prices have risen just $40 on petrol AWD, $100 on petrol 2WD and $1,575 on diesel AWD compared with the previous option price of $2,500. Front and rear parking sensors are newly standard on GX and GXL.

A new option for 2WD GXL incorporates a 10-way power-operated driver’s seat with two-position memory, heaters for the two front seats and upmarket leather accents throughout – all for $2,500.

Two additional safety technologies previously fitted to Cruiser only – blind-spot monitor and rear cross-traffic alert1 – have been added to GXL.

At the top of the range, the price for the petrol AWD Cruiser has been reduced by $910 while the diesel AWD Cruiser remains unchanged. Cruiser retains all its premium features including 18-inch alloy wheels, leather-accented trim, 11-speaker JBL audio, tilt-and-slide moonroof and a power-operated back door.

Toyota Australia’s executive director sales and marketing Tony Cramb said RAV4 features and value are being enhanced at the same time the range is experiencing unprecedented consumer demand.

“These are key attributes that have enabled Toyota to sell more SUVs than any other company – even before the SUV category was officially recognised in 2003,” he said.

“In fact, RAV4 is enjoying its fifth consecutive year of record sales with demand up 4.5 per cent so far in 2017.”

RAV4 first arrived in Australia in 1994 and in 2015 became the only vehicle of its type to pass 250,000 sales. It has now amassed almost 285,000 deliveries in this country.

Toyota said its studies in Japan have shown the active safety technologies now standard across the RAV4 range have reduced nose-to-tail accidents by 50 per cent compared with vehicles not equipped with these features.

Toyota’s pre-collision system uses a camera and radar to monitor the road ahead. If it detects the risk of a collision, it uses audible and visual warnings to prompt the driver to brake. It also primes the brakes to provide extra stopping force when the driver presses the brake pedal.

If the driver does not respond to the alerts, the system will automatically apply the brakes to prevent a collision or reduce the force of impact. This autonomous emergency braking technology can reduce vehicle speed and potentially bring the car to a complete stop.

Toyota’s active cruise control helps the driver maintain a safe distance from the vehicle in front while the lane-departure alert system helps prevent accidents and head-on collisions caused by a vehicle leaving its lane.

Automatic high beam switches between high and low beams to avoid dazzling other drivers. As high beam is used more frequently, obstacles are easier and quicker to spot.

RAV4 is equipped with Toyota’s advanced Dynamic Torque Control AWD system. It uses information from speed, steering-angle and yaw-rate sensors to control torque transfer between the front and rear wheels.

The range includes three four-cylinder engines, starting with a 107kW 2.0-litre petrol for 2WD variants. AWD versions can be specified with a 2.2-litre turbo-diesel engine that develops 340Nm of torque, or a 2.5-litre petrol engine that develops 132kW.

The 2WD 2.0-litre GX is offered with a six-speed manual gearbox or the option of Toyota’s Multidrive S continuously variable transmission (CVT). This automatic transmission, which is standard on the 2WD GXL, also provides a sporty, sequential seven-speed mode.

Petrol AWD variants are all fitted with a six-speed multi-mode sequential-shift automatic transmission. Diesel AWD RAV4 is offered with manual or automatic transmissions for the GX and is automatic-only for GXL and Cruiser.

Every new RAV4 is covered by Toyota Service Advantage capped-price servicing at a maximum of $180 per service (petrol) and $240 per service (diesel)3.